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Torquay United defender Austen Booth has been charged by the Football Association (FA) in relation to betting on football matches.
The charge relates to 289 bets placed on football matches by Booth in a nearly four-year period between August 2017 and July 2021, which was before he joined the Gulls.
In a statement released on the Torquay United website, the club said: “Torquay United confirms that the Football Association has charged Austen Booth with Misconduct under FA Rule E1.2 in respect of 289 bets placed on football matches between 05 August 2017 to 07 July 2021, prior to him joining the Club.
“Austen is co-operating fully with the FA’s investigations. The Club will be supporting Austen throughout this process and will provide further updates at the earliest opportunity.”
This marks yet another FA charge related to betting in recent months.
Towards the end of May, Reading FC’s Head of Football Operations, Mark Bowen, was charged by the FA after it was alleged he had placed 95 bets on football matches between April 2022 and January 2024; while Swansea City’s Player Liaison Officer, Huw Lake, was suspended by the governing body from all football and football-related activity for 12 months for betting related misconduct.
In the same month, West Ham United midfielder Lucas Paqueta was charged by the FA with four breaches of its betting rules, after it was alleged that the Brazilian international had intentionally tried to get booked by the referee in four of the Hammers’ Premier League fixtures to affect the betting market.
